Democratic Republic of the Congo

Equatorial Guinea

Gabon

Nigeria

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Algeria

Iran

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Economics

Energy

OPEC+ countries agreed to delay the phase-out of 2.2 million barrels of oil per day of production cuts from Jan. 1, 2025, until April 1 and to phase those cuts out over 18 months instead of the originally planned 12 months, Argus Media reported on Dec. 5. 

OPEC+: Members To Delay Boosting Oil Production for Third Time

Saudi Arabia, Russia, the United Arab Emirates and other OPEC+ participants will delay the start of their planned unwinding of 2.2 million barrels per day in voluntary oil production cuts from Dec. 1 to the end of December, OPEC announced in a Nov. 3 press release. 

OPEC+: Unwinding of Voluntary Production Cuts Delayed by One Month

Ethiopia

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Politics

The BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, adopted its summit declaration, which noted the creation of a BRICS "partner country" status, Reuters reported on Oct. 23.

BRICS: Bloc Creates Partner Status, Extends Status to 13 Countries

Mali

Niger

Military & Security

An attack targeting Nigerien security forces in the northern town of Assamaka resulted in seven fatalities and five injuries, Afrique sur 7 reported on Oct. 20.

Niger: Attack on Town Near Algerian Border Kills Seven

Tuareg rebels under the Strategic Framework for the Defense of the People of Azawad (CSP-DPA) on Sept. 11 claimed the alliance's first reported use of drones in targeting the Goundam camp in Mali's Timbuktu region, which houses Malian soldiers and Wagner alias Africa Corps forces, French Radio International reported the same day.

Mali: Tuareg Rebels Use Attack Drones in Escalating Conflict

On Sept. 8, Algeria's election authority announced that President Abdelmadjid Tebboune had been reelected for a second term after he secured 94.7% of the vote in the Sept. 7 presidential election with a reported provisional average turnout rate of around 48%, AP reported the same day. 

Algeria: President Tebboune Wins Reelection

Republic of the Congo

Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and other oil producers participating in OPEC+'s voluntary 2.2 million barrel per day production cut agreed to delay the cut's phase out from Oct. 1 to Dec. 1, OPEC+ said in a press release published on its website on Sept. 5.

Global: OPEC+ Delays Voluntary Production Cut Phase Out by Two Months

OPEC+ may delay a planned 180,000 barrel per day increase in oil production in October, Reuters reported on Sept. 4, citing three OPEC+ sources.

Global: OPEC+ Weighs Delaying Production Increase

Assessments

Sudan

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Bahrain

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Palestinian Territories

Qatar

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Yemen

The Geopolitics of Water

Environment, Science & Technology

Science & Technology

Population growth, security vacuums, bad governance and climate change will increasingly strain the desert region's already scarce water supplies, raising the risk of social unrest, interstate conflict and violence from non-state actors.

The Geopolitics of Water: In the Middle East, Water Will Increasingly Become a Weapon and Driver of Conflict

Mexico

United States

Italy

The Mexican Senate building in December 2019 in Mexico City. The Mexican Senate will begin considering a controversial judicial reform Sept. 8 that it plans to vote on by Sept. 11.

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: Judicial Reform in Mexico, An EU Competitiveness Report

Morocco

France

Algeria's President Abdelmadjid Tebboune meets with France's President Emmanuel Macron at the Borgo Egnazia resort on the sideline of the Group of Seven summit in Savelletri, Apulia region, Italy, on June 13, 2024.

Global Elections

The likely reelection of President Tebboune will yield a nationalist approach to foreign policy in the short term and additional economic reforms, though a growing internal debt burden will challenge economic growth.

Algeria's Political and Economic Course Seems Set as President Tebboune Readies Himself for Another Term

Media

Podcasts

What changes can we expect in a potential second term for Tebboune?

Essential Geopolitics: What to Watch Ahead of Algeria's September Election

Displaced Sahrawis arrive at the refugee camp of Dakhla, which lies some 170 kilometers southeast of the Algerian city of Tindouf, on Jan. 13, 2023.

Rabat will leverage growing support of its sovereignty claims to attract investment to the disputed region, as Algiers tries to prevent the territorial dispute from further harming its foreign relationships.

Morocco and Algeria's Evolving Strategies in Western Sahara

Tunisia

Low water levels are seen at the Sidi Salem Dam, Tunisia's largest embankment dam, on April 6, 2023. 

Social Issues

Water and food shortages this summer will increase socioeconomic risks in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia, along with the impetus for more sustainable agricultural practices. 

After a Dry Spring, Northwest Africa Braces for Disruptive Crop Failures

Angola

Mozambique

Europe

Cyprus

Ukraine

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (2nd L) and Libya's Tripoli-based Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah (3rd L) attend an agreement-signing ceremony between Italian multinational oil and gas company Eni and the Libyan National Oil Corporation in Tripoli, Libya, on Jan. 28, 2023.

As Europe turns away from Russian energy, Italy positions itself as a natural gas conduit between the Continent and Africa.

With Energy Deals in Africa, Italy Positions Itself as Europe's Next Gas Hub

Western Sahara

After decades of isolation, Algiers plans to use its energy wealth to engage with the world, but its lack of economic diversification will hamper this process.

Algeria Emerges From Isolation, but Its Economy and Foreign Policy Will Limit Change

Russian President Vladimir Putin (center) listens to his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan (left) at the 2019 Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. 

The Weekly Rundown: Putin and Erdogan Head to Kazakhstan, Palestinian Leaders Head to Algeria

Spain

People take part in a ''Free Sahara'' rally in Madrid, Spain, on March 30, 2022, in protest of the Spanish government's recent move to recognize Morocco's autonomy plan for the disputed territory of Western Sahara. 

Security

Madrid’s support will further legitimize Rabat’s claimed control over the disputed territory, though it will also risk inciting more attacks by Algeria-backed militants.

Spain's New Stance on Western Sahara Brings Morocco-Algeria Tensions Back to a Boil

Senior Middle East and North Africa Analyst Emily Hawthorne breaks down the latest developments in the dispute over Western Sahara and what’s at stake.

Essential Geopolitics: What’s Behind Rising Algeria-Morocco Tensions

A bulldozer passes by a hilltop manned by Moroccan soldiers in Western Sahara on Nov. 23, 2020.

The Difficulties of North African Reform

If Rabat makes more controversial statements, tensions with Algiers could escalate to economic and/or military actions.

The Risks of Algeria and Morocco’s Latest Diplomatic Row Over Western Sahara

Algeria is located on the Mediterranean coast of Africa. The Sahara Desert rests along the country’s southern border, while the coastal plains of Tunisia and Morocco line its eastern and western edges. The Tell Atlas mountain chain splits the country between its desert interior and its temperate coast.     This coastal region supports Mediterranean agriculture, including olives, citrus, vines and vegetables. The country also boasts deposits of coal, iron and phosphates. But for the most part the energy sector dominates the Algerian economy, leaving the state exposed to the rise and fall of the oil market. Algeria’s Saharan interior, bordering Libya, Mali, Mauritania and the Western Sahara, plays host to many of the country’s oil and natural gas fields, which account for about 94 percent of Algerian exports.    Throughout Algeria’s history, most of its population has lived north of the Tell Atlas mountain chain. Because the nation’s power and politics center on the coastal cities of Algiers, Constantine and Oran, it has long been exposed to the influence and might of its neighbors rimming the Mediterranean Sea &mdash; especially northern powers such as ancient Rome and imperial France. But fortifying the coast comes at a price: The Algerian government’s grip is weaker in the desert interior, where the country is vulnerable to smuggling and infiltration from nearby countries.     Since gaining independence from France in 1962, Algeria has navigated between competing ideological forces like pan-Arabism, communism and political Islam. All of these belief systems came from other Mediterranean powers like as Egypt and France, transiting the coastal plains or the Mediterranean sea to reach Algeria. To avoid being subsumed into these various transnational movements, successful Algerian states have focused on controlling the country’s coastal heartland, extending power south of the Tell Atlas once this critical region is secure. 

SITUATION REPORTS

OPEC+: Members To Delay Boosting Oil Production for Third Time

OPEC+: Unwinding of Voluntary Production Cuts Delayed by One Month

BRICS: Bloc Creates Partner Status, Extends Status to 13 Countries

Niger: Attack on Town Near Algerian Border Kills Seven

Mali: Tuareg Rebels Use Attack Drones in Escalating Conflict

Algeria: President Tebboune Wins Reelection

Global: OPEC+ Delays Voluntary Production Cut Phase Out by Two Months

Global: OPEC+ Weighs Delaying Production Increase

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